Autonomous driving comparison and evaluation
A system for autonomous driving comparison and evaluation comprises an input interface and a processor. The input interface is configured to receive trip information generated during a driver controlled trip and receive information from an autonomous driving system related to actions that the autonomous driving system would have taken had it been in control during the trip. The processor is configured to compare a trip factor of the driver controlled trip with a simulated trip factor that would have occurred had the autonomous driving system been in control.
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Modern vehicles (e.g., airplanes, boats, trains, cars, trucks, etc.) can include a vehicle event recorder in order to better understand the timeline of an anomalous event (e.g., an accident). A vehicle event recorder typically includes a set of sensors, e.g., video recorders, audio recorders, accelerometers, gyroscopes, vehicle state sensors, GPS (global positioning system), etc., that report data, which is used to determine the occurrence of an anomalous event. If an anomalous event is detected, then sensor data related to the event is recorded and transmitted to a vehicle data server for later review by a human reviewer. A driver score can be determined using the reviewed events (e.g., events determined to be caused by poor driving reduce the score for the driver). However, for the case of scoring driver performance to a simulated optimal driver model, data visibility is required at a granularity beyond the exception based video review.
Various embodiments of the invention are disclosed in the following detailed description and the accompanying drawings.
The invention can be implemented in numerous ways, including as a process; an apparatus; a system; a composition of matter; a computer program product embodied on a computer readable storage medium; and/or a processor, such as a processor configured to execute instructions stored on and/or provided by a memory coupled to the processor. In this specification, these implementations, or any other form that the invention may take, may be referred to as techniques. In general, the order of the steps of disclosed processes may be altered within the scope of the invention. Unless stated otherwise, a component such as a processor or a memory described as being configured to perform a task may be implemented as a general component that is temporarily configured to perform the task at a given time or a specific component that is manufactured to perform the task. As used herein, the term ‘processor’ refers to one or more devices, circuits, and/or processing cores configured to process data, such as computer program instructions.
A detailed description of one or more embodiments of the invention is provided below along with accompanying figures that illustrate the principles of the invention. The invention is described in connection with such embodiments, but the invention is not limited to any embodiment. The scope of the invention is limited only by the claims and the invention encompasses numerous alternatives, modifications and equivalents. Numerous specific details are set forth in the following description in order to provide a thorough understanding of the invention. These details are provided for the purpose of example and the invention may be practiced according to the claims without some or all of these specific details. For the purpose of clarity, technical material that is known in the technical fields related to the invention has not been described in detail so that the invention is not unnecessarily obscured.
Autonomous driving comparison and evaluation is disclosed. A system for autonomous driving comparison and evaluation comprises an input interface configured to receive trip information generated during a driver controlled trip and receive information from an autonomous driving system related to actions that the autonomous driving system would have taken had it been in control during the trip; and a processor configured to compare a trip factor of the driver controlled trip with a simulated trip factor that would have occurred had the autonomous driving system been in control. The system for autonomous driving comparison and evaluation additionally comprises a memory coupled to the processor and configured to provide the processor with instructions.
In some embodiments, a vehicle event recorder mounted on a vehicle records vehicle data and anomalous vehicle events. Anomalous vehicle event types include accidents, speed limit violations, rough road events, hard maneuvering events (e.g., hard cornering, hard braking), dangerous driving events (e.g., cell phone usage, eating while driving, working too long of a shift, sleepy driving, etc.), and any other appropriate kind of anomalous vehicle events. The vehicle event recorder analyzes data from sensors (e.g., video recorders, audio recorders, accelerometers, gyroscopes, vehicle state sensors, GPS, radar, ADAS, etc.) to determine when an anomalous event has occurred. The vehicle event recorder transmits event data, including sensor data, to a vehicle data server, where the data is stored and analyzed. The vehicle event recorder additionally comprises a simulated driver assistance system. The simulated driver assistance system is designed to simulate driver assistance and autonomous control systems as a baseline of autonomous driving performance based on data received from the installed driver assistance and autonomous control sensors and systems installed in the vehicle. In various embodiments, the installed driver assistance system inputs are comprised of electronic stability control, braking assistance, adaptive cruise control, automatic lane following, automatic steering and navigation, full automated driving, or any other appropriate driver assistance system. In some embodiments, the installed driver assistance system comprises an autonomous driver assistance system. In some embodiments, the installed driver assistance system comprises a set of Advanced Driver Assistance Systems (ADAS). During normal vehicle operation, the vehicle driver controls the vehicle, and signals from the installed driver assistance system may or may not be ignored by the driving subsystems of the vehicle depending on the driver enabling or disabling these systems. Regardless of the installed driver assistance systems outputs being utilized by the driving subsystems of the vehicle, signals from the installed driver assistance systems are processed by vehicle event recorder simulated driver assistance system and the signals are used as a reference against which the driver's actions can be compared. A driver score for the trip can be determined based on the comparison of the driver actions with the simulated driver assistance system actions. In some embodiments, any deviation of the driver's actions from the signals of the driver assistance system causes a reduction of driver score. In some embodiments, a trip factor (e.g., travel time, fuel economy, trip safety, etc.) is determined for the trip and compared with a simulated trip factor for the trip indicated by the signals of the simulated driver assistance system. The trip score is determined based on the ratio of the trip factor and the simulated trip factor. The driver score is computed as an aggregate of trip scores—for example, an average or a weighted average of trip scores over many trips. In various embodiments, the weighted average includes weighting to decay the contributions with time (e.g., more recent trips are weighted more than older trips, for example the last week, is weighted more than the previous week and much more than last month or 6 months ago), weighting to emphasize longer trips, shorter trips, trips during certain periods of the day (e.g., working hour trips vs. non-working hour trips, etc.), weighting to emphasize customer priority (e.g., based on riskiness—for example, statistically riskier such as due to bad weather, heavy traffic, higher number of ADAS warnings, based on fuel efficiency, etc.), or any other appropriate weighting.
In some embodiments, a driver is benchmarked against the installed driver assistance systems (e.g., lane keep system and following distance system). In some embodiments, the driver is benchmarked against a simulated driver assistance systems based on data provided by the installed driver assistance components and sensors (e.g., simulate a lane keep system based on lane detection and tracking (LDAT) data from a lane departure warning (LDW) system).
Driving subsystems 308 comprise subsystems controlling the various driving elements of the vehicle (e.g., acceleration, brakes, steering, etc.). In some embodiments, driving subsystems 308 receive commands from the vehicle controls (e.g., accelerator pedal, brake pedal, steering wheel, etc.) and provide commands to the driving elements of the vehicle to operate the vehicle as indicated by the driver. In some embodiments, driving subsystems 308 provides vehicle control commands received from the driving elements of the vehicle to vehicle event recorder 302 for processing. In some embodiments, vehicle event recorder uses driving subsystems control information received from installed driver assistance systems 310 and vehicle control commands received from driving subsystems 308 to compute a trip score. In some embodiments, when a trip is complete and a trip score has been computed, the trip score is displayed to the user via user interface 306. In various embodiments, a trip score is calculated on vehicle event recorder 302 or a vehicle data server based at least in part on data collected by vehicle event recorder 302, any applicable backend data contextual data (e.g., traffic details, weather data, etc.), or any other appropriate data. In some embodiments, if vehicle event recorder 302 detects a large or significant difference between the driving subsystems control information and the vehicle control commands, it determines that an anomalous event has occurred. In some embodiments, the anomalous event is stored. In some embodiments, the anomalous event is transmitted to a vehicle data server for later review.
In various embodiments, trip factors comprise safety factors, efficiency factors, and compliance factors. In comparison, regulatory compliance comprises safety factors and efficiency factors. In various embodiments, speed limit is relevant to safety and fuel efficiency, HOS is relevant to efficiency, fatigue is relevant to safety factors, or any other appropriate factors.
In some embodiments, simulated trip information is determined for the actual route only, and no determination is made whether other routes could/should have been taken. In some embodiments, no account is taken of anomalous events along the actual route, and the simulation of trip event assumes normal driving conditions.
In some embodiments, the system for driving comparison and evaluation allows for an actual driver to be compared to or evaluated against an autonomous driver. The driver score is compared to a performance of an autonomous driver's simulated performance when following the same route from A to B, a different route from A to B, the same route from A to B including driving circumstances (e.g., events, traffic, weather, etc.), or any other different levels of included factors. In some embodiments, the processor is configured to detect a deviation between the driver controlled trip and the trip that would have occurred had the autonomous driving system been in control. In some embodiments, the driver score is provided using an output interface to a user of the system.
Although the foregoing embodiments have been described in some detail for purposes of clarity of understanding, the invention is not limited to the details provided. There are many alternative ways of implementing the invention. The disclosed embodiments are illustrative and not restrictive.
Claims
1. A system for scoring a trip made by a vehicle, comprising:
- an input interface configured to: receive trip information generated during the trip, wherein a driver operates the vehicle during the trip; and receive sensor data associated with the trip; and
- a processor configured to: determine an actual trip factor based at least in part on the trip information, wherein the actual trip factor is based on at least one of fuel economy and a trip safety rating; determine a simulation characteristic in response to the received sensor data, wherein the simulation characteristic includes a control signal to control vehicle subsystems in response to characteristics of the trip, the control signal being equivalent to an output generated by a driver assistance system in response to the characteristics of the trip; determine a simulated trip factor based at least in part on the determined simulation characteristic, wherein the simulation characteristic includes at least one of: simulated fuel economy and a simulated trip safety rating; determine a trip score based at least in part on a ratio of the actual trip factor to the simulated trip factor; output the trip score; determine whether there are any anomalous events on the actual route based on a comparison between the control signal and the trip information; and activate a driver assistance system in response to the determination that at least one anomalous event has occurred.
2. The system of claim 1, wherein the processor is further configured to
- determine a driver score based at least in part on the trip score.
3. The system of claim 2, wherein the driver score is based at least in part on an old driver score.
4. The system of claim 1, wherein the trip factor comprises a travel time.
5. The system of claim 1, wherein the trip factor comprises a fuel consumption.
6. The system of claim 1, wherein the trip factor comprises a trip safety.
7. The system of claim 1, wherein the processor is further configured to detect a deviation between the driver controlled trip and the trip that would have occurred had the driver assistance system been in control.
8. The system of claim 1, further comprising an output interface configured to provide a driver score.
9. The system as in claim 1, wherein the determination of the simulation characteristic includes determining a trip start location and a trip stop location.
10. The system as in claim 1, wherein the determination of the simulation characteristic includes determining whether the simulator follows a same route as an actual route.
11. The system as in claim 10, wherein the determination of the simulation characteristic includes, in the event that the simulator follows the same route as the actual route, setting a simulation route to the actual route.
12. The system as in claim 10, wherein the determination of the simulation characteristic includes, in the event that the simulator does not follow the same route as the actual route, setting a simulation route to a calculated route.
13. The system as in claim 1, wherein in the event that there is/are anomalous event(s) on the actual route, indicating that there is/are anomalous event(s) to the driver assistance system.
14. The system as in claim 1, wherein in the event that there are not any anomalous events on the actual route, determining simulated trip information for simulation route.
15. The system as in claim 1, wherein the received sensor data associated with the trip comprises sensor information that is processed using a simulated driver assistance system.
16. The system as in claim 1, wherein the received sensor data associated with the trip comprises installed driver assistance system information that is processed using a simulated driver assistance system.
17. A method for scoring a trip made by a vehicle, comprising:
- receiving trip information generated during the trip, wherein a driver operates the vehicle during the trip;
- determining an actual trip factor based at least in part on the trip information, wherein the actual trip factor is based on at least one of fuel economy and a trip safety rating; and
- receiving sensor data associated with the trip
- determining a simulation characteristic in response to the received sensor data, wherein the simulation characteristic includes a control signal to control vehicle subsystems in response to characteristics of the trip, the control signal being equivalent to an output generated by a driver assistance system in response to the characteristics of the trip;
- determining a simulated trip factor based at least in part on the determined simulation characteristic, wherein the simulation characteristic includes at least one of: simulated fuel economy and a simulated trip safety rating;
- determining a trip score based at least in part on a ratio of the actual trip factor to the simulated trip factor;
- outputting the trip score;
- determining whether there are any anomalous events on the actual route based on a comparison between the control signal and the trip information; and
- activating a driver assistance system in response to the determination that at least one anomalous event has occurred.
18. A computer program product for autonomous driving comparison and evaluation of a vehicle, the computer program product being embodied in a non-transitory computer readable storage medium and comprising computer instructions for:
- receiving trip information generated during the trip, wherein a driver operates the vehicle during the trip;
- determining an actual trip factor based at least in part on the trip information, wherein the actual trip factor is based on at least one of fuel economy and a trip safety rating; and
- receiving sensor data associated with the trip;
- determining a simulation characteristic in response to the received sensor data, wherein the simulation characteristic includes a control signal to control vehicle subsystems in response to characteristics of the trip, the control signal being equivalent to an output generated by a driver assistance system in response to the characteristics of the trip;
- determining a simulated trip factor based at least in part on the determined simulation characteristic, wherein the simulation characteristic includes at least one of: simulated fuel economy and a simulated trip safety rating;
- determining a trip score based at least in part on a ratio of the actual trip factor to the simulated trip factor;
- outputting the trip score;
- determining whether there are any anomalous events on the actual route based on a comparison between the control signal and the trip information; and
- activating a driver assistance system in response to the determination that at least one anomalous event has occurred.
19. The method of claim 17, wherein the driver assistance system controls a vehicle such that the vehicle is autonomous.
20. The system of claim 7, further comprising decreasing a driver score responsive to a determination that the deviation is above a threshold, wherein a decreased driver score indicates poorer driving compared with a higher driver score.
21. The method of claim 17, wherein the actual trip factor includes a trip safety rating, the trip safety rating being calculated from at least one of: a safety of a route during the trip, a speed of the vehicle during the trip, a driving style during the trip, and one or more violations made during the trip.
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Type: Grant
Filed: Dec 22, 2013
Date of Patent: May 16, 2017
Patent Publication Number: 20150175168
Assignee: Lytx, Inc. (San Diego, CA)
Inventors: Brett Hoye (San Marcos, CA), Daniel Lambert (Carlsbad, CA), Greg Sutton (Del Mar, CA)
Primary Examiner: Peter Egloff
Application Number: 14/138,081
International Classification: G09B 9/04 (20060101); B60W 40/08 (20120101); G09B 9/052 (20060101); G09B 9/042 (20060101);